Charles PINCKNEY

(1757-1824)

Senate Years of Service:

1798-1801

Party:

Democratic
Republican

PINCKNEY, Charles, (father
of Henry Laurens Pinckney), a Delegate, a Senator and a
Representative from South Carolina; born in Charles Town (now
Charleston), S.C., October 26, 1757; pursued classical studies;
admitted to the bar and commenced practice in 1779; member of the
State house of representatives 1779-1780, 1786-1789, 1792-1796,
1805, 1806, 1810-1814; fought in the Revolutionary War and was
taken prisoner by the British in 1780; Member of the Continental
Congress 1785-1787; member of the Constitutional Convention in
1787; member of the State constitutional conventions in 1788 and
1790 and served as president; Governor of South Carolina 1789-1792,
and 1796-1798; was elected in 1798 as a Democratic Republican to
the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the
resignation of John Hunter and also for the full term expiring
March 3, 1805, and served from December 6, 1798, until his
resignation in 1801; Minister to Spain 1801-1804; again served in
the State general assembly and as Governor of South Carolina
1806-1808; elected to the Sixteenth Congress (March 4, 1819-March
3, 1821); resumed the practice of law and also engaged in
agricultural pursuits; died in Charleston, S.C., October 29, 1824;
interment in St. Philip’s Churchyard.

Bibliography

Dictionary of American Biography; Bethea, Andrew. The
Contribution of Charles Pinckney to the Formation of the American
Union. Richmond: Garrett & Massie, Inc., 1937; Matthews,
Marty D. Forgotten Founder: The Life and Times of Charles
Pinckney. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press,
2004.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present